- New green award category to promote new, bold solutions to counter rising environmental challenges facing urban populations worldwide
- SG Mark 2016 Award officially opens for submission from 9 October 2015
Singapore, October 9, 2015 – Singapore’s renowned design and innovation award for business progressiveness – the Singapore Good Design Mark (SG Mark) 2016 – enters its third round with a sharpened edge to promote new solutions to counter challenges facing our environment and overall business competitiveness.
Announcing a new award category – the SG Mark Green Business Design Award – at South Beach, Singapore’s recently-opened iconic Green Mark Platinum Award winning building, Mr Tai Lee Siang, President of Design Business Chamber Singapore (DBCS), said, “The new green design award is timed to underscore our commitment towards sustainability and how businesses can use design to effectively deal with current environmental challenges and lifestyles affected by climate change – as well as shape the next generation of products and solutions. We hope to spur new solutions to bring about greater sustainability through more creative and responsible use of resources to fulfil business and life aspirations of people worldwide.”
He added “We are also pleased to organise the SG Mark for the third consecutive year. We strongly encourage design professionals, businesses and even students from all over the world to look around us now and into the future to create new daring solutions to transform the way we work, live and do business to improve living standards for everyone in the community.
“In the past two years, 140 products have been conferred the prestigious SG Mark Award. We look forward to more submissions this round – especially from SMEs and start-ups as well as young designers that have made design their winning edge in an increasingly competitive marketplace.”
DBCS, Singapore’s premier multidisciplinary design business chamber, launched its SG Mark Award 2016 today as a symbol of design excellence to award companies and individuals in Singapore and overseas who have crafted outstanding designs that have made a distinctive imprint on business and the community.
In conjunction with launch of SG Mark 2016, DBCS also unveiled its first SG Mark App to showcase SG Mark winners and their products. This free app, called SG Mark App, will feature a one-touch access to a wide range of products and services from lifestyle to environmental. This allows consumers to use their smartphones to easily find information on products and solutions with good design standards anywhere and anytime.
SG Mark App
For a start, the SG Mark App will use image recognition technology to allow users to take snapshots of SG Mark products and services at DBCS events and exhibitions. The app will then unlock details of these products and services, such as product features, company profiles, videos and other relevant information.
The app will also include a shopping cart and user analytics at a later stage for e-commerce and market intelligence purposes.
The app, which can be used on both Android and iOS platforms, will be available for free download on both Apple Store and Google Play from today.
The mobile application has been designed to drum up members’ brand awareness and drive overall user experience for the Singapore Good Design Mark programme.
About SG Mark and the SG Mark Green Business Design Award - Eligibility, Judging Criteria and Application Process
The SG Mark conforms to the same globally-stringent design standards as the Japanese G Mark so that consumers and businesses are better able to differentiate good designs and be assured of its quality and design standards as well.
To be awarded annually, the SG Mark will be accredited to winning products and services with outstanding designs, under the three umbrella categories:
Lifestyle, Personal (Business-to-Consumer)
Industry (Business-to-Business)
Public Services such as Education, Research, Medical etc.
Entries submitted for the SG Mark will go through a comprehensive evaluation system by a judging panel comprising of reputed designers, representatives from relevant government agencies and organisations with successful design track records.
Entries for the SG Mark will be assessed based on criteria that include Empathy, Value, Inspiration, Ethnics and Responsibility, Sustainability and Progress.
The SG Mark Green Business Design Award will have all the above criteria but will include added focus on production efficiency, use of environmentally friendly materials, health and environmental protection as well as upcycling and recycling.
Explaining the criteria of the SG Mark for Green Design, Mr Tai said, “We want to emphasize health and environmental protection as part of the manufacturing process of products. This is to ensure that workers’ health and well-being are a safeguarded and that the environmental impact is minimized to ensure long term sustainability.
“To prevent further consumption of new raw materials, there is an increasing need for manufacturers to seriously consider both upcycling and recycling. The former has to do with enhancing value of existing used materials and the latter with re-creating new materials from existing used materials.
SG Mark will seek to celebrate winners that clearly demonstrate these aspects of sustainability. In addition, a special prize will be presented to the “greenest” product or solution.”
Buildings, Interior Design Projects & Parks that have already obtained the Green Mark Awards from the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) or equivalent, will also be given credit in the assessment.
Submission of Entries
Organisations can submit their applications for the SG Mark 2016 award from now till 31 Dec 2015. Entries awarded with the SG Mark will be announced in March 2016.
Application fees for the SG Mark start from S$200. The second screening with winners’ package fee will be S$5,600.
Details of the product categories, timeline, fees and selection criteria are outlined in the Appendix.
About Design Business Chamber Singapore (DBCS)
With its roots dating back to 1985, Design Business Chamber Singapore (DBCS) is Singapore’s premiere multidisciplinary design business chamber, with a dynamic community of over 160 business leaders, practitioners and academia from diverse backgrounds.
DBCS launched the Singapore Good Design Mark (SG Mark) in 2013 to encourage and champion holistic design practices for global competitiveness. The symbol of design excellence is awarded annually to acknowledge the outstanding designs of companies and individuals from Singapore and overseas.
The Chamber is also the organiser of the annual Singapore Design Awards (SDA). Providing a distinct platform where creative excellence in the industry is celebrated, the premiere Awards event recognises outstanding companies and exemplary designers behind the winning designs of Singapore and the region.
DBCS also seeks to raise the standard of professional practices and create new business opportunities through cross-collaborations in local and international contexts. It has participated and co-partnered with other associations and government bodies in several exhibitions and conferences, such as the ICSID 2009, Singapore Pavilion at Shanghai World Expo 2010, Singapore Gifts & Stationery Show 2012 and SingaPlural 2013, 2014 and 2015.
Media Release issued on behalf of Design Business Chamber Singapore by Stratagem Consultants Pte Ltd
For more information, please contact:
Tham Moon Yee / Soh Tiang Keng / Taufiq Zalizan
Tel: 6227 0502
Email: tmy@stratagemconsultants.com
sohtk@stratagemconsultants.com
tz@stratagemconsultants.com
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